"Ah."
She heard that he set off before the epidemic even started.
Roselyn shrugged at the voice, adding that as she got older, she had many questions.
“It’s the Abyss.”
“Abyss?”
"Yes. I've awakened."
Roselyn added a few words.
"I wonder what kind of Abyss possesses such mysterious power."
Roselyn shrugged her shoulders.
"Isn't Abyss like a trade secret?"
"Of course. I didn't ask you to tell me."
Watching the man smile and tell her not to worry, Roselyn added that she was fine.
"Actually, I'm joking. There is no such thing as an Abyss. I just actually died once and came back to life."
He paused at Roselyn's words.
The captain of the guard let out a low laugh as if he had heard an amusing story.
"It turns out that a friend I knew in the past was actually a god in a state of play. I left because I remembered that friend had asked me to help Kaluta."
"Princess Bellion seems to enjoy joking. If you do not wish to tell me about the Abyss, it is fine not to."
It seemed as though he thought Roselyn was lying because she didn't want to talk about the Abyss. The captain of the Royal Guard replied in a voice mixed with laughter.
"After all, there is no real need to reveal the Abyss unless there is a special reason."
She shrugged her shoulders.
'It's true.'
That is why she doesn't really feel like being honest.
“Was it fun?”
“Yes. It was fun.”
"It seems I was born with a sense of humor, unlike my father."
Roselyn answered.
At her words, the captain of the guard let out another small laugh.
Roselyn, who was walking down the hallway, stopped abruptly. It was because of those approaching from the opposite direction, leading a large number of servants.
The other side also paused for a moment as if they had spotted Roselyn, then soon approached where she was.
Roselyn bent over.
"Look who this is—isn't this Princess Bellion, the one causing such a stir these days?"
"I greet His Highness the First Prince."
As she calmly greeted them, a low laugh was heard from above.
"Yeah, I've been looking forward to seeing that precious face."
“Is that so?”
Roselyn answered calmly.
Then the First Prince twisted his lips slightly.
Normally, when this happens, there should have been something to say, such as apologizing for not showing her face often or apologizing for not having greeted him in advance.
"...Alright, that is enough of the greeting, so lift your head."
"Yes."
Roselyn straightened her bent back.
Golden hair and blue eyes, even the whites of his eyes, and an arrogant gaze.
He had the looks to explain why he was secretly regarded as the Crown Prince.
'He looks exactly like the Emperor.'
Since they resemble each other this much, everyone has no choice but to secretly regard the First Prince as the Crown Prince.
'Then, does His Highness the Third Prince's hair resemble his mother's after all?'
Roselyn slowly lowered her eyes.
There was almost no publicly known information about the mother of the Third Prince, Arma.
There were rumors that she was a maid, and also rumors that she died in a major arson incident.
With no backing, the Third Prince had almost no standing, and he grew up with quite a hard time.
'You said it was trauma...'
Although he was the furthest from the line of succession, Arma, holding the title of Prince, must have struggled in many ways. A dilemma.
A person who was somehow lacking to keep but felt too uneasy to discard, making it useful in many ways to kill them instead.
"Are you on your way to see His Majesty?"
"Yes, I was in charge of mediating the treaty with Kaluta. Before that, I also met His Highness the Third Prince."
"...Are you saying that the youngest one went to Father?"
"Yes."
The First Prince, with his arms crossed, looked at Roselyn with a very dissatisfied expression.
"I don't like it."
Roselyn lightly brushed off the low murmuring voice.
"If you are my younger brother's fiancée, shouldn't you have come to greet me first? How can you not show your face even once in over 10 years?"
"... Yes?"
"Pfft, are Father and the youngest in the drawing room?"
"Yes."
"If you are curious about the video of the youngest when he was little, come visit me. I’ll give you a special show."
He brushed past Roselyn and headed straight for the drawing room. Roselyn blinked once.
'...It seemed like the Emperor cherished Arma, but...'
Was that part similar too?
It's surprising.
I thought the Princes didn't get along well with each other.
"It seems they get along better than I thought."
"Yes, they are cute people."
"It seems you like the Princes."
"Of course. After all, I've known him since I was little."
At the sound of his voice mixed with laughter, Roselyn shrugged her shoulders and resumed walking under his guidance.
"You can take this carriage."
Roselyn nodded and turned her head slightly, stopping mid-boarding the carriage.
"Sir. I have a question too. May I ask you?"
So, she's curious.
"Hmm? Of course. If it is anything I know, I will answer you with all my heart."
"Why did you offer me the Queen title?"
She wondered why someone of this caliber would become the King of 'Makluxa' and try to kill the entire royal family.
The man stopped abruptly, and his gaze slowly fell upon Roselyn.
***
"...Lyn, Roselyn?"
Roselyn, who had been lost in thought, suddenly lifted her head.
“Yes, Father.”
"What are you thinking, that you are acting like this even though I have come in?"
"I guess I was just tired after going to the Imperial Palace today."
"What? Go to sleep. Didn't I tell you to wander around in moderation? Seriously..."
Cherty Bellion grumbled and complained, but still laid Roselyn down and covered her with the blanket.
Then he pulled a chair over to the bed and sat down, then gently took her hand.
"...What are you suddenly doing?"
"...Uh, I heard that holding your hand sometimes helps you sleep well."
Roselyn blinked once at the voice that was quietly added.
It was that moment.
"Time to go to sleep."
It felt like tinnitus was ringing in jer ears, and soon a strange voice was heard, and a peculiar scene came to mind.
***
"...Yes. Good night, Father."
"...Yes. Sleep well."
Greetings that were somewhat awkward for a parent and child were exchanged. Cherty Bellion, with his lips tightly sealed, firmly grasped the child's outstretched hand. His large hand instantly wrapped around the small child's hand. At that, the child, whose cheeks were flushed as if by a fever, wore a faint smile on her lips.
"I like it when Dad holds my hand..."
Even while struggling with a fever, the child mutters softly and gently closes her eyes.
"What, what did you just say..."
"Ah. I'm sorry, Father."
"Ahem, who, who said I didn't like it? It's tiring if we keep talking, so I guess it's best to keep calling me that from now on. If you say even one more word, you might get even hotter..."
At Cherty's lengthy monologue, the girl let out a small laugh, then tightly grasped her father's hand, which was clumsily holding hers.
“Yes, Dad.”
"Ahem. Ahem! Ah, anyway... go to sleep, ah. Ah, Dad... will stay by your side until you fall asleep."
As if relieved by the man's added voice, the child nodded slightly.
Not long after, the sound of wheezing slowly spread.
"...Your fever is rising again."
He stretched out the other arm that wasn't holding the child's hand, placed it on little Roselyn's forehead, and muttered softly as he took her temperature.
"... I wish my ability weren't poison."
How wonderful it would be if it could be medicine instead of poison.
Then he could cure his child's illness.
He wouldn't have killed the mother, and he wouldn't have taken the mother away from the child.
"I wouldn't have hesitated to watch you grow up safely by my side."
Looking down at the child trying to sleep with very uneven breathing, he slowly rubbed his face.
"..."
He slyly lifted the hem of the child's clothes.
There was a stab wound on her waist. The stitches were clearly visible, suggesting that the wound had not yet fully healed.
"How scared must it have been..."
He gritted his teeth and muttered menacingly.
"I never imagined I wouldn't have any memory of the past month after falling into the water."
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